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Griffon Armada
The Griffon Armada was responsible for all spaceborne operations for the Griffons Alliance, including planetary defense. The Griffon Armada earned a respectable reputation throughout the Galaxy for its innovative, hard-hitting starfighter and warship designs, as well as its participation in various campaigns against the Galactic Empire. The armada held its own in several battles, most notably the the destruction of the third Death Star. However, in 15 ABY, the Griffon Armada was largely eliminated at Cochran during the the planet's overthrow. Surviving units were later absorbed into the Republic Navy to continue the war against the Empire despite the collapse of the Griffons Alliance. Fleet Operations Comprised of several obtained designs of warship, and one of its own particular unique design, the Armada was charged with the defense of all Griffon interests. Most of the ''Victory''-class Star Destroyers in the fleet were scrounged from disparate forces, or brought from clans or groups that signed into the Griffon structure, or obtained from one of Rendili StarDrive's reclamation yards. A few, such as [[GSS Harbinger|GSS Harbinger]], sported dubious pasts. A few dozen escort and patrol ships were also in the fleets, but the real prizes were those vessels of the ''Mako''-class of battlecruiser. Three had been built by 11 ABY, with a fourth in the planning stages when Pride-1 was destroyed. Strategy and tactics revolved around utilizing the heavy warships as a core, with small assault-shuttle-sized ships (known as lighters) roving about loaded with Spaceborne Assault Troopers, or SATs. On the periphery, or in lancing attacks, Mantaray starfighters would be employed, teamed with a maelstrom of Stingray remotes. The entire formation would often be called a "buzzball" or "murdersphere" by other naval personnel. Because of the limited manpower resources the Griffon Alliance was faced with, they made heavy use of technology and automation. Crews on their starships were remarkably small, and through discipline and supplemental help by droids, they often were on two-shift rotations (most other navies employed three or four shifts). They had a blatant disregard for vessels that were not of their own design, and would often resort to stripping down a captured or obtained ship, crewing it with a few droids, and using it either as a fireship or ramship. Notable Ships ''See Griffon Warships of Note for list.'' Starfighter Operations The starfighters were the signature embodiment of the Griffon Alliance. Each and every naval officer was trained both in a role upon a capital warship and in the piloting of a starfighter — namely, the AEC aeMk.7 Mantaray space superiority fighter. Numbering only several hundred examples, and treated like a personal mount moreso than a machine, the Mantaray was typically the first, and sometimes only, glimpse someone got of the Griffons. AEC had mastered composite construction, but again given the lack of manpower, both to work the assembly lines and to actually fly the produced craft, they produced only two variants of the remarkable craft. The first and more well-known, the Mk.7, became the workhorse of starfighter operations. It was often deployed on long patrols, either as a pair or as a quartet, and became well-regarded as a "cruiser" or "drifter". Usually, Stingrays would accompany them on these patrols, but would come moreso into play during engagements and battles. Mantaray pilots (also known as Rayriders by others in the pilot community) had to be adept at multi-tasking, much more so than any other pilot in the galaxy. This was partly due to the limited numbers of Mantarays in existence — the Armada encouraged pilots to be exceptionally cautious and don't waste them. The primary factor was due to the relationship between Mantarays and the remote-controlled Stingrays. In the absence of a capital warship, the Stingrays could be coordinated and controlled by a Mantaray, but while this would give the Mantaray an added dynamic of offensive and defensive capability, it would put an enormous task load upon the Mantaray's pilot. Stingrays, for all their complexity and aura, were nothing more than advanced, skittery drones. They were remarkably effective, though, when controlled by an experienced Griffon pilot or central coordinator on a warship. As time progressed, they were upgraded and reprogrammed with ever more advanced automaton patterns and algorithms, but never achieved, or were given, completely autonomous control. Notable Units *Shadow Eagles Squadron Ranks :Admiral :Commodore :Captain :Lieutenant :Midshipman Category:Griffon Organizations